Inaugural 'Cocoa Crawl' attracts visitors to Long Grove during off-season

Brian O'Mahoney / Pioneer Press

Alex Kavouras, 4, and his mother, Nikki Kavouras, of Mount Prospect, enjoy hot chocolate at the Long Grove Coffee Company during the first-ever Cocoa Crawl in downtown Long Grove.

Alex Kavouras, 4, and his mother, Nikki Kavouras, of Mount Prospect, enjoy hot chocolate at the Long Grove Coffee Company during the first-ever Cocoa Crawl in downtown Long Grove. (Brian O'Mahoney / Pioneer Press)

As snowy and cold conditions swept through the Chicago area this past weekend, some braved the winter weather to walk around downtown Long Grove for the chance to warm up with hot cocoa and other chocolate treats.

In a village known for its quaint downtown that encountered challenges during the national economic crisis and for its community festivals when the weather is much warmer, the inaugural Long Grove Cocoa Crawl on Saturday represented a new idea for the many businesses a part of the Historic Long Grove Downtown Business Association.

Not only are Long Grove businesses trying to capitalize on a number of customers who frequent the village's downtown, but they're also trying to do it during the winter – a season that is typically quieter for Long Grove compared to the warmer months when the Chocolate Fest, Strawberry Fest, Apple Fest and other community festivals take over the village's streets, said Ryan Messner, president of the Long Grove business association.

"We want to make Long Grove a community destination for families to enjoy," he said, adding, "And there's not a lot of activities in January, February and March for families to come out and enjoy the season."

Geared toward families, the first-ever Cocoa Crawl involved 20 local businesses, offering up chocolate-related treats and snacks. Participants in the crawl picked up a map of the businesses and roamed around the downtown, trying out samples at each business as they shopped.

At the end of the crawl, the participants were able to vote for their favorite treats, according to the business association. The participating businesses ranged from the Long Grove Confectionery to Signature Popcorn.

While the event partly was meant to promote the well-known Chocolate Fest in Long Grove, which happens in May, it also marked a concerted effort by Long Grove businesses to attract people to the village even when the weather is not ideal, Messner said.

The association recently has been trying to plan more festivals and community events throughout the year with the idea of planning as many as one event every month, Messner said.

Community events are important to Long Grove since the activities often draw visitors from neighboring towns and the broader Chicago area, said Eric Wallor, owner of Signature Popcorn and the Covered Bridge Creamery.

"We think the Cocoa Crawl will showcase what's coming back to Long Grove and what's exciting in our town," Wallor said.

In the aftermath of the Great Recession in the late 2000s, the business scene in Long Grove had its fair share of struggles when two-thirds of the downtown properties were owned by banks and business demand locally slowed, Messner said.

"We didn't evolve quick enough in adapting to the economic situation, which was a recession," Messner said. "Today, no properties are bank-owned."

With activity returning, smaller community events that happen throughout the year can complement the village's larger festivals, such as Strawberry Fest in June and Apple Fest in September, Messner said.

Village resident also have seen investments in local infrastructure recently.

In March, a two-phase project to replace downtown streets, sidewalks, water mains and lights on Old McHenry Road begins, while similar work is scheduled for Robert Parker Coffin Road in 2019, Messner said.

"These projects are a resurgence of downtown Long Grove," he said.

As for the inaugural Cocoa Crawl, the event represented an opportunity for the Long Grove Confectionery Co. to draw in families during a quieter time of year, said Mary Prekop, director of retail sales for the business.

"For me, we are in the business of chocolate, so this is an opportunity for us to bring in families on a cold Saturday afternoon for amazing hot chocolate or confectionery delight," she said.